Winjie Tang Miao was appointed chief operating officer of Texas Health Resources, a nonprofit health system, in May 2019 and currently manages the system’s 29 hospitals and 26,000 employees across 26 counties in North Texas. I am supervising. The system is growing rapidly, with a new hospital under construction in Forney and a recently renovated maternity center at the system’s flagship hospital in Dallas.
Below, the self-described “recovering engineer” and basketball fanatic talks about her favorite local eateries, why she loves traveling to Africa, and talks to North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams the day after her team won the national championship. Talk about the time you met. If you want to learn more about how Miao people function as “proactive” leaders, keep reading.
Education: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (MHA), Johns Hopkins University (BS)
Birthplace: Decatur, Illinois
First job: “Lab assistant supporting retinal development research at the Johns Hopkins University Wilmer Eye Institute. As a child, always asking “why,” I really enjoyed the process of research and discovery. Ta. However, I like collaborating with others and found that spending time alone in a lab was not for me. This led me to healthcare management, where I am also able to collaborate, learn, and problem solve. ”
Best advice: “I attended a STEM high school with students from all over the state of Illinois. One of the school administrators frequently repeated Henry David Thoreau’s favorite quote, and he still says it in my office. “Don’t just be a good person, be a good person for something.” That feeling permeated the school and remains my mantra. ”
Dinner Party: “Cint Marshall, CEO of the Dallas Mavericks, has a career that combines many of my personal passions, including servant leadership, STEM education, basketball, and community service.” DFW Because airports are critical infrastructure supporting the region’s economic success, driving growth requires understanding the future needs of all stakeholder groups, said Sean Donahue, Airport CEO. Additionally, I love to travel, and as a recovering engineer, I love seeing the complex logistics operations that allow us to fly safely every day.”
Destination of choice: “For me, a perfect weekend is hiking in the mountains. Usually the Rocky Mountains, but on an equal opportunity basis I also enjoy the Shenandoah and Blue Ridge Mountains. If I had a little more time, I’d go to Hawaii, the ocean, the mountains. It’s the perfect combination of , welcoming people, and great food. It’s all about new experiences abroad, so I rarely go back to places I’ve been to before. The only exception is Tanzania, where my husband and I have been for over 10 years. The friendships we have built with the Maasai people are incredibly rich and fulfilling. Yes, wildlife safaris are truly amazing!
I collect: “I may not collect anything concrete, but I consider myself a collector of ideas. I learn from many teams at Texas Health and We love collaborating, and our front-line team members are our greatest asset when it comes to innovating in the healthcare industry.”
Hobbies/Passion: “One of the most restorative things I do is go for long walks or hikes every weekend. Hiking in the mountains (see above) is good for my soul. An outlet for my creativity My family’s favorites are cioppino, braised short ribs, Asian-style porchetta, and the Chinese dim sum dish known as lo bak goh or radish cake.But one of my favorite things is the fridge. It’s about opening it up and seeing what’s inside and making something from scratch without a recipe.”
Industry changes: “Navigating the healthcare industry can be challenging, especially understanding your options and being clear about your care decisions and preferences. My grandmother immigrated to this country in her 30s. and worked in a garment factory until her 70s. I wish our care processes (clinical, social, administrative) were easily accessible and understandable to my grandmother (and your grandmother too!). I believe we are making progress.”
Local Cuisine: “No Living Human Can Eat This!” 1. FW’s Hatsuyuki Hand Roll Bar – The hand roll set is great value and their specials are always great – especially the salmon belly sushi. 2. Jake’s Burgers – Good old-fashioned burgers. 3. Any Indian restaurant that serves rava dosa with homemade coconut chutney – delicious!”
Guilty Pleasure: “Hallmark Channel Holiday Movie”
Fun fact: “As a graduate student at UNC, I attended every home men’s basketball game and bled Carolina blue.”
Key Advisor: “I have been fortunate to spend my entire career at Texas Health Resources, an organization with an award-winning culture. We have been named to Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For nine years in a row. We live the Texas Health Promise: Individuals Caring for Individuals Together. For 23 years, I have had mentors at every turn, from hospital leaders to ICU nurses, patient advocates, and now my CEO. ”
Toughest challenge: “Opening a brand new hospital at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Alliance in 2012.”
First vehicle: “I got my first car when I was in graduate school. It was a 1989 Volvo sedan.”
Proud moment: “Two things: 1. We are four-time recipients of the Texas Hospital Association Bill Aston Quality Award, an industry first. Reducing stroke mortality requires the entire care team (physicians, nurses, Our hospitals are top 10 performers and deliver the best outcomes for patients, according to our latest employee survey. We rank in the top quartile for engagement and satisfaction, not only compared to other healthcare organizations, but also benchmarked against Fortune 500 companies across the industry. That we ask so much of our employees, and that our employees are so passionate about providing care at such a high level, is a testament to the resiliency of each of our care team members and the perpetuation of the Texas healthcare culture. It shows strength.”
Better DFW: “DFW is growing rapidly and has enough critical mass for each industry to host its own associations, conferences, networking events, etc. We also encourage industry collaboration through various chambers of commerce and North Texas. There are also opportunities for interaction between, but I would like to see more committees, forums where diverse industries come together to learn from different perspectives, translate and apply successful solutions from one industry to another. It’s important to work together in new ways that benefit not only the organization but the community and region as a whole.”
Pivotal moment: “In May 2019, Jeff Canoes, MD, and I were appointed as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Experience Officer duo for the Texas Department of State Health Services. I am thrilled to be working with Jeff again. It was a special occasion. He became my boss at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas over the years and has become a trusted mentor to me on how our team works together. Unfortunately, in January 2020, we lost Jeff to cancer, and less than a month later, the organization and I were both excited about the collaboration, the opportunity, and the future. While I was grieving, the pandemic hit.
Like all organizations, we had to pivot quickly and learn and build new and unknown realities. But we all had a huge hole in our leadership and hearts to fill. We got through this together. I am extremely proud of how our organization has responded with compassion for our patients and each other. I’m especially proud of how quickly we built the infrastructure to deliver more than 300,000 doses of lifesaving vaccines to our communities. I also had to pivot, having spent my time focusing on long-term solutions and making data-driven decisions. By leveraging the strengths of each individual and business unit, we were able to collectively make good decisions within limited information and time constraints. Jeff has always been quick and decisive, and I thought of him often and embraced that mindset during those first whirlwind months. ”
Walk-up song: “‘Defying Gravity’ from the musical ‘Wicked'”.
Must-read book: This is the End of the World by Nicole Perlroth. Cybersecurity is one of the highest risk areas for all organizations today. Learning the origin stories, markets, and capabilities of cyber weapons is not only interesting, but also reveals vulnerabilities and future scenarios for which we should all be planning. ”
Spirit Animal: “I’d go with owls. They are keen observers, form close social bonds, and act in a systematic and conscientious way. And owls are nocturnal, so 6 p.m. and 10 a.m. are my most productive hours.”
Alternate Reality: “Journalist. I am a curious person by nature and love putting puzzle pieces together to uncover untold stories.”
Embarrassing moment: “As an avid UNC basketball fan, I was really excited to see my Tar Heels win against Gonzaga in the 2017 Final Four. The next morning, I was at CVS waiting to check out. As I was sitting there (maybe I should buy something to soothe my sore throat?), I noticed Coach Roy Williams standing in front of me in line. I had a complete fangirl moment. My husband encouraged me to say something, and against my better judgment, I did. When I tried to wish him congratulations and good luck at the same time, I was lame and starstruck. I was devastated and totally incoherent.As a kid, I was more interested in reading books than following boy bands, but that day I was a 13-year-old teenager watching my girlfriend idols. It might have been the same.”
Bucket list: “I don’t have a complete list, but I recently witnessed the Great Serengeti Migration. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience and one I’ll never forget.”
Key Strategies: “1. Carefully outline the military concept “commander’s intent,” clarifying priorities and the problem you are trying to solve. 2. Be proactive – be curious and know what’s going on, leverage the high-reliability organization principles of respecting expertise, and let those closest to the work decide on the best solutions. Masu. 3. Team members must be “clean” with their superiors before they can be “clean” with other team members. As a leader, it’s your job to take the mystery out of you. Because in the absence of information, people create their own stories. This requires authenticity, vulnerability, and clear communication. And unless team members have that trust and respect for their leaders, they won’t be able to perform at their best with their colleagues and the team they lead. ”
Predicting the future: “The speed of discovery and innovation across the industry, from breakthroughs in clinical treatments such as curing sickle cell and reversing type II diabetes to novel and more equitable ways of care, such as virtually and at home. These vast new solutions will provide a better care experience for consumers, reduce the burden of care, support team members, and improve the health and well-being of our communities. Health is actively embracing these advances and is succeeding in many aspects of its service delivery to the community.”
author
Will is a senior writer for D CEO Magazine and editor of D CEO Healthcare. He writes about healthcare…
